Release the Beast
by QueenofPenguania
Summary: Zen's been acting weird, and MC's had enough.


**Zen x Fem! MC**

 **(because constantly using their and they is really stressing me when trying to make things make sense Me:"Not the both of them just MC." Asshole:"But you said they, so that means plural so both." ┌∩┐(** **ಠ** **_** **ಠ** **)┌∩┐ honestly The U S of A needs to get its ass in gear and create a non-gender specific pronoun of the singular variety for my sake as a writer)**

Idea for fic is from Kittykatmadison (on wattpad) (my friend)

MC was honestly so confused right now. Don't get her wrong, at this point nothing was really all that surprising anymore, Zen had been acting weird for awhile now. But this, this was new.

"...I'm a werewolf, MC…."

 **6 Hours Earlier**

Sharp, harsh light filled the room as MC turned the overhead bedroom light on. Zen groaned from his place on the rumpled bed; his hand flew to his face to block out the light as he squinted.

"MC, Babe, can you turn the lights back off, please."

"Zenny, you know I love you, but you really need to stop going out and getting so drunk! Is there something special going on around this time of month because for the past year and a half you've been coming to bed late and waking up late around now. We barely have enough time as it is, and it's not like we can spend much time together as a couple when you're busy with acting, and I'm busy being your manager!" MC pouted a bit before taking in a deep breath.

Zen ran his hand down his face in response to her words. MC, noticing he seemed a bit agitated at her words, apologetically finished off her tangent.

"I'm sorry Hyun, I just wish we had more time to go on dates and stuff. I understand that you must be under a lot of stress right now what with all the going ons of the acting life, but I don't want us to grow apart either. I miss you."

Zen lowered his expression of annoyance and adopted a quiet and considerate voice. "It's alright, MC. I understand; I don't want us to grow apart either, but if I'm being honest, I'm not going out and getting drunk. I've just been having trouble going to sleep lately."

"Is everything okay?" MC spoke quickly, an earnest expression covering her face.

"Don't worry about it. It's probably just the full moon coming tonight. You know what they say about full moons." Zen's words had been flat and almost sarcastic, a tone MC wasn't use to having directed at her from him.

A frown marred the area between MC's eyes.

"If you're sure….."

"Honestly, Babe, I'm fine don't worry about it." Zen had punctuated his sentence with a small smile. MC really wanted to comment on the fact that Zen did not seem fine at all, but stopped herself in fear of pushing him too much. If it was really important he would tell her; at least that's what MC hoped.

"I love you, Hyun. If something's really bothering you you know you can tell me, right?" A short pause, "I'm here for you." A slightly longer pause, "Just wanted to make sure you know that."

A strange, almost contemplating, look crossed over Zen's face before he schooled his expression into one of understanding and love, briefly closing his eyes.

"I understand; matter as fact, how about we go out tonight and watch the full moon together?" Zen seemed pained in asking like he wanted to take the words back, but MC quickly let that observation fall at the pure want to spend time with him.

"I'd love that, Zen." And she really meant it. MC was so afraid of their relationship falling apart, and here Zen was offering up an opportunity to reinforce it. Beyond that she just really wanted to spend more time with him. She wasn't lying when she said she missed him; it was hard being around him all the time, but not really being with him.

The day continued on pretty much the same as usual; MC did the laundry and Zen folded. Zen worked on his lines for an upcoming role and MC helped him practice. MC made dinner and they set down and ate it together; both were watching the time as it slowly inched closer to 8:00 P.M., the time when night would finally hit completely, and the moon would be on full display. MC felt, however, that their opinions on the approaching date were very different. While MC was the epitome of ecstatic, Zen was clearly anxious about what one might guess from his expression was his impending doom. It made MC question what his real motivation was for setting up this outing. She worried that she wouldn't be very happy by the end of the day.

Considering how enchanting and enthralling the full moon was it was quite ironic that the little date going on was anything but for MC. The air was thick with tension and unsaid words; MC just couldn't find it in her to really enjoy the time with Zen because of it. She knew that there was something more to this outing than what Zen said. She may have ignored it at the time, but Zen wouldn't have been that anxious about going on a minor date with his girlfriend. The Zen she knew was confident in most things regarding himself, and so she worried what could possibly make him so perturbed.

Thinking about it know, MC was pretty sure she could see a few clouds hovering in front of the moon. Maybe it wasn't just them with something blocking their way. Honestly, that's how MC felt right now; like something was blocking them from being forthright with each other. MC wasn't stupid she understood that Zen wanted to talk about something to do with how he had been acting lately. She just didn't know what that was.

The tension continued to rise until Zen broke it by leaning over to unzip the bag he brought with him. He pulled out a long strip of chain and turned to MC.

"I need you to chain me up. I know how that sounds, but trust me that has nothing to do with this. Just please don't question me right now, MC."

She looked evenly at him, trying to understand just what the hell was going on. "Don't question him" just how the hell was she supposed to do that when he was going around whipping out chain. In public (sorta). At night. On the full moon. Telling her it's not for kinky stuff. That leaves a lot of fucking questions that kinda need to be answered.

Despite this internal turmoil, MC stood up, grabbing the chain from Zen, and proceeded to chain him to one of the nearby trees. All the while her face was stoic and unmoving. She didn't know how to feel about this. MC was honestly so confused right now. Don't get her wrong, at this point nothing was really all that surprising anymore, Zen had been acting weird for awhile now. But this, this was new.

Zen looked straight into her eyes, once she was finished, and spoke clearly and slowly, but with a grimace upon his face. One that seemed partly from physical pain this time.

"...I'm a werewolf, MC…."

MC stared at him with a mix of incredulity and confusion. He had to be joking; not that this was something someone should joke about when their were obviously serious problems going on. MC furrowed her brow as she grew angry at his words. She felt a headache coming on as she tried to decipher why he would say something like that.

"You're a what?! You're fucking kidding me right?!" She would rather this all be explained away as some weird kink Zen had or a stupid joke he was playing to try and divert her attention from the topic of what was going on with him, but, honestly, Zen wasn't like that; she knew that. If she expected anyone to do something like that it would be Seven not Zen. Which is why she was having such a hard time with this. Zen wasn't the kind of person to lie about stuff like this which only left her with a few explanations, one of them she really didn't like to entertain: he wasn't lying.

As if the world was working against her, the clouds finally parted from the moon. Its beams shot down upon the couple. The light reflected off of Zen's hair and shot into her eyes. She remembers closing them against the brightness. Then pain filled screams and cracking bones. And she was scared. And her eyes were still closed. And she opened them. Her voice stuck in her throat because before her was not Zen. Not the man she loved. Before her was a silver beast of nightmares, red eyes piercing into her soul.

It couldn't be Zen. It just couldn't be. This was a sick, sick joke; that was all. Zen had gotten together with Seven to put some sick, elaborate prank on MC. That was all this was. A sick, elaborate prank. This wasn't really Zen in front of her. This was just a guy in a costume -maybe it was Seven or maybe it was Zen- or it was a machine, a prop. Zen wasn't actually a werewolf. He couldn't be. They didn't exist. Zen wasn't a werewolf.

But somewhere in MC, she knew. This was Zen. Zen was a werewolf. That was the truth. It was too real not to be. There was too much Zen in the beast's eyes. Too much Zen in the beast in general. There was too much of Hyun Ryu here for it not to be him, and that scared MC, so she ran.

Pushing past trees and stumbling over uneven terrain, MC ran as fast as she could. She wanted to leave this place as fast as possible, and the mournful and pained howling that started up behind her wasn't going to keep her from that goal.

This couldn't be real. She didn't want it to be real. This was a nightmare, and she would wake up. She just needed to escape, and then she would wake up. Just a nightmare. Just an illusion. But she had never seen an illusion, never seen a nightmare, _so goddamn real._

She showed up back at their home hoping to God that Zen would be there; that he wasn't really out there chained to a tree. Disheartened by her futile search, she moved into the bedroom with the intent to wait for him in the bed. He never showed up, never walked through the front door, and eventually sleep claimed MC as her eyes drooped from exhaustion; The softness of the duvet lulling her into its embrace.

Warmth. Zen. Those were some of her first thoughts as she awoke the next day. She turned over and snuggled deeper into the warmth, scrunching up her face as strands of white hair flitted across her nose. Slowly, but surely, the events of last night found their way back into her head. She immediately jolted upright in the bed, sheets falling and tangling around her waist. MC stared down at him, crimson eyes openly gazed back- she wondered how she could have never noticed. That bestial glint in his eyes that made him not quite human.

"MC."

"Hyun."

Zen sighed deeply, running a hand over his face. He looked up at MC and frowned.

"You ran away last night; I remember that much. I'm sorry if I scared you, but I didn't know how else to show you so that you would believe me…...MC, I'm a werewolf and I have been almost since we've met. The Zen you were with for six months after your first RFA party? That's still me. I never hurt you in the year and half I've been one, and I won't hurt you in the future. All I'm asking is for you to please, please look past this, and understand that I'm still me." His face was heavily creased in apprehension and fear. His eyes were begging her to understand. His eyes, not the beasts.

He was scared of her response. He feared how she would act. Zen was scared of her. Zen. Scared. It hurt to understand this; that she worried him so much. She didn't know how she was going to respond though, and that scared her, too. She loved Zen, but she didn't know if she could stay, knowing this about him. She wanted to stay. She wanted to be able to look past this, but it was so hard to do so. MC didn't want it to be. She wanted to be able to say "I'll always stay by your side" but she had to be realistic, and that wasn't. Her boyfriend was a werewolf, and she had to come to terms with that.

"Hyun, I get that-...I get that you've never hurt me. I get that in some way you're still you…..but….you're also a werewolf, and I'm not gonna lie; that scares me a bit. I want to be here with you. I want to stay, but I'm scared, Hyun, and I don't want to be scared of the person I love." MC's voice became sob choked and tense. She really did hate that she was scared of him.

Zen's face took on a determined look. "The tell me how. Tell me how to make you feel safe. I want you to stay here. I love you, MC, and if locking me in a cage every full moon is what it takes, then so be it."

"NO! NO! The last thing I want is to see you locked in a cage. I don't want to dehumanize you like that.

Jesus Christ, Zen. I'm staying. I just wanted you to know I was scared so that we could work together to make me feel safe. I was thinking of something more along the lines of cute cuddles and you acting stupid until I can't imagine you ever hurting me.

I do appreciate that you're willing to go so far for me, though. My Zenny, always looking out for me. How could I possibly be scared of you." A tear traveled down MC's cheeks. How could she be scared of Zen. She wanted to yell at herself for feeling that way even though she clearly knew Zen would never hurt her.

Zen leaned forward, crying out, "So you'll stay?!" MC nodded her head at the question, pressing her forehead against his.

A smile stretched out across Zen's face. He broke out in relieved sobs, leaning forward and pressing his lips to MC's. They moved in slow synchronism, lips gently molding to each other. Tears would mix with the taste of one another making everything slightly bitter and salty. Zen's hands came up to frame MC's face. His hands ghosted over round cheeks, thumbs tracing tear tracks. MC tugged at the hair of the base of his neck, and Zen moaned into the kiss, pulling MC tighter against him. Close and warm. These were familiar things to MC and she allowed herself to be lost in them. Lost in Zen.

Roaming hands, searching mouths, bodies flush against each other. Warmth. One. Familiar emotions, familiar feelings; Zen's hair slipping across their shoulders. Zen's toned body malleable against her's. Soft lips so sugary sweet and yet not at the same time. The fullness that accompanied the oneness between them like two puzzle pieces that fit so perfectly together.

This was Zen with her. Zen in her. _This was Zen_. And how could she ever think differently. It didn't matter that Zen was a werewolf. It never mattered; not really. What had mattered was that Zen was different. Not the same, but even that was false. This was still Zen. This _is_ still Zen. The Hyun Ryu that she had met when she first went to that apartment is still the same Hyun Ryu she's with now. He never really changed; not in any way that really mattered.

Life with Zen was basically the same as always, though there were special routines that would take place on the full moon. MC would still make breakfast every day-along with lunch, dinner, and any other food (bless his heart, but Zen just really isn't chef material). Zen still helped with the laundry and other errands and chores. Their relationship was doing better now that everything was out in the open between the two, and Zen's acting career was soaring; with help from his lovely manager, of course.

One of the biggest changes, actually, was the marriage of Zen and MC. That's right not anything to do with Zen being a werewolf, just that their married. _With a child on the way_. The child bit was a major concern of Zen's; not just because he was afraid he wouldn't have enough time for a kid what with being an actor, but that he wasn't sure weather the kid would be a werewolf, too.

Zen wasn't all too aware of all the ways someone could become a werewolf, and neither was MC. It didn't help that Zen never told MC how he became a werewolf. She didn't want to press on the matter incase it was a sensitive subject and/or a traumatic experience that he would rather not revisit, but MC was worried about not knowing. Even if the information was small and insignificant, MC wanted to know because it would be rather significant if her baby ends up being a werewolf. Zen consciously argued that the information on his turning wouldn't matter and wouldn't change anything if their baby was a werewolf or not. MC just had to trust him on it.

It's not that MC wouldn't love her child if they were a werewolf, it's that she was worried that she wouldn't know how to take care of the baby if it was. MC believed that an information Zen could give her about being a werewolf would help, even the information about his turning. She was worried, and as the mother of this child, her concerns were quite valid.

Nevertheless, she would never learn how Zen became a werewolf.

Mi-Sook was born on a warm spring day. Even as newborn she was clearly beautiful; something MC silently attributed to her father.

It was to the relief of the two parents, as they watched her grow, that Mi-Sook showed no signs of being or becoming a werewolf because of Zen's genes. Their biggest concern was trying to keep her out of the media's view- a rather futile thing as Mi-Sook was the daughter of Zen, a now highly respected actor in many countries.

LIfe was going well for the family, even with the strange trips they took every full moon. It was something MC could have never dreamed of. Zen and her, parents, together, and still in as much love as they ever were. Only five years earlier she had been so worried about their failing relationship; now those concerns seemed fastous and inconceivable. That they had not only stayed together, but created this family too, was a major accomplishment when paired against their relationship from five years ago.

MC sipped from her mug of tea as she set on the porch, watching her daughter running and playing in the yard. A hand gently squeezed her shoulder, and she looked up at Zen. He flashed her a careful glimpse of an unusually sharp canine, and MC looked up at the darkened sky, the full moon peeking out for between some clouds. She stood turning to him and calling her daughter back into the house.

The family would not be seen for the rest of the night, but the neighbors would not notice, too preoccupied by the chilling sound of howling permeating the night air.

 **AN:This would have been up yesterday, but I was too busy celebrating my birthday. Nevertheless it's here now and that's what matters. Sorry about how it kinda rushes at the end. I just wasn't sure how to end it. I may go back and edit the end some at a later point in time. I'm trying to work on making my one shots longer and I'm glad that this one made it to 3k, but I did take me working on this pic** **for a while for that to happen. My goal is to one day have a one shot at 7k, and that may seem kind of out there considering the length I usually put out, but I'm going to try anyway.**


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